


Vanilla Swirl

by relinquished



Series: Sunsetshipping [1]
Category: Dream Daddy: A Dad Dating Simulator
Genre: Alcohol Mentions, I love them all, M/M, Multi, OT3, Park date, Picnics, crude language, ice cream date, its them holding hands and being soft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-03
Updated: 2017-08-03
Packaged: 2018-12-09 15:24:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,366
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11671836
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/relinquished/pseuds/relinquished
Summary: Three dads go on an ice cream date.





	Vanilla Swirl

**Author's Note:**

> did my roommate and i just create a ship? yes we did.  
> the ship name is sunsetshipping!  
> clarification on the ship name, as my roommate said, "you meet with joseph during sunsets, robert during the night, and brian during the day. the sunset is a compromise between times so joseph and brian don't have to stay up till ass-crack of dawn to talk to their boyfriend."

Robert awoke with a start, the sun hitting his eyes from his open blinds. He groaned lowly, wanting to roll over and get some more sleep before sitting up quick enough to pop his back loudly.

"Fuck," he hissed softly, rubbing the back of his neck and grabbing his phone to check the time. He choked as he noticed that it was 4:30, yanking the blankets from himself and running to the restroom to get dressed and spray on some deodorant. He had forgotten about the monthly barbecue and that he was practically required to show up to his neighbor's home at what he considered to be an ungodly time. Quickly throwing on his jacket, he ruffled Betsy's fur and left, locking the door and strolling over to Joseph's. When he arrived, he noticed everyone was already there, including his friend Brian. He nodded at Mat and the new Dad, quietly making his way over to his friend and grabbing a bowl of chips. He jumped slightly as he felt a big arm rest on his shoulders, a merry laugh following.

"It's good to see you!" He had a large smile on his face and a couple of crumbs in his beard. Robert hummed and nodded, popping a chip into his mouth as he and Brian stood at the snack bar, "Did you forget to set an alarm?"

Brian got a small nod in response as Robert swallowed, speaking up, "Yeah. Forgot it was today." He topped off his sentence with a gentle shrug as he ate, knowing he had to eat something today. Brian hummed and nodded in understanding, grabbing a cup of water from the table. 

"I understand. It's easy to forget things after a busy night!" He smiled and quickly dropped the subject, moving onto today's activities and filling him in on what had happened. Apparently, Lucien had spilled a bunch of drinks and left, as some form of anarchy against his father. Robert didn't understand why he did it but nodded along, frowning slightly.

"Joseph and I were talking," Brian suddenly switched topics, startling Robert slightly, " and we thought it would be a good idea if we all took a break from things and had a day to ourselves, just the three of us." Robert frowned and sipped his drink, thinking. He didn't know Joseph very well and the parts he did know of Joseph were not things he should tell Brian or any children. As much as he didn't exactly want to get to know Joseph, Brian seemed enthusiastic about the idea of his two friends having a fun experience together. He gave a small hum of approval at the idea and Brian beamed at him, squeezing him with one arm before heading off to tell Joseph about Robert agreeing. He sighed softly and shook his head, putting his drink down and checking his phone. Val had messaged him about visiting for the weekend next week and he quickly told her that he'd be sure to clean up for her. He put his phone away as Brian and Joseph walked back to him, Brian smiling proudly and Joseph giving him a warm look. He felt slightly uneasy but nodded at him as he looked at Brian. He was told that they decided five would be a good time, as the day would be winding down and it would be a bit cooler outside at the park. Robert silently agreed and finished his drink, humming and noticing it was around 8 already. 

"Gonna head home, I should get at least a few hours of sleep. It takes me a while to settle down." Brian nodded and patted his back, smiling.

"It was great to see you. I'll be by at five to pick you up!" Robert frowned slightly, confused.

"We can walk to the park from here, why would you- oh, you mean as in walk there." The bigger man chuckled and nodded, gently pushing him toward the exit.

"Yes, I do. Now go lie down." Robert waved him off and walked off to his house, heading in and pouring himself a glass of whiskey to wind down for the night.

  
  


+++

  
  


Robert awoke to a knocking at his front door and groaned, rolling over a bit. He had too many drinks that night and felt slightly hungover. The knocking got louder, seemingly pounding into his skull as he attempted to get the motivation to get out of bed and answer the door. His memory of yesterday's plans faded in slowly and he sighed, realizing it was most likely Brian here to get him for their park day. He grunted and climbed out of bed, popping his back and ignoring the protests of his knees as he walked to the front door, pulling on his jacket as he walked over. He stepped into some shoes as he opened the door for Brian, not acknowledging him as he quickly went to feed his dog. He listened as Brian stepped inside, hearing him give a light hum of disapproval at the state of his house.

"Yes, I know, Brian. My house is a wreck. You tell me to clean it every time you come over." He heard Brian give a hearty laugh as he walked into the kitchen where Robert was. He was wearing a blue shirt instead of his usual green one, earning a soft hum of approval from the shorter man. He poured his dog a bowl of food and gave her water, checking that the doggy door was unlocked and grabbing his keys to lock the door and brushing past Brian to the front door.

"Is Joseph at the park already?" He asked, looking over at him as they stepped out of his house.

"No, he's waiting for us at his house. The other dads decided to take the kids to a movie so that Joseph and I didn't have to hire a babysitter. " He smiled and walked over to Joseph's, noting how Mary's usual car wasn't there. Robert still wasn't used to that. They had recently divorced and she didn't want anything to do with anyone in that family, deciding to pack up and leave the state to "somewhere warm,", as she had told Robert. He sighed and knocked on Joseph's door, watching it open a few seconds later. Joseph smiled happily at them and stepped outside to meet them.

"Hey, you two!" He seemed awfully cheerful for someone who just got divorced.

"Howdy, Joseph! How are you feeling?" Joseph shrugged and locked up the house, turning back to the two.

"A bit tired, but I'm excited to go relax," He spoke honestly, smiling at the two briefly before leading the way to the park. Brian quickly followed after him, Robert trailing behind slowly. He listened in as they spoke about their children and how school was going, not speaking up as his daughter was already out of school and working. He looked around as they walked, taking in the scenery. There was a squirrel trying to bury a nut into the sidewalk and failing horribly, a mom walking her daughter in the stroller, and a couple of kids playing catch on the grass. Not paying attention to where they were going, he ran straight into the back of Brian. He let out a small 'oof' and heard a gentle chuckle from the other man.

"We're crossing the street Robert, be sure to pay attention." Robert playfully flipped him off and crossed the street to the entrance of the park. He noticed the sun dipping into the sky, watching the colors slowly expand across the horizon. Splashes of crimson red and orange dashed across the horizon, the night sky slowly spilling in, almost as if it was chasing the sun itself. The three stood at the entrance for a bit, just staring at the sky and listening to cars drive by. Robert thought about how this day was going to go and how many more times they would be together for things such as this. He was brought from his thoughts as a big hand clapped down on his shoulder.

"Let's head in! " He grabbed Joseph's hand, pulling him along. Out of panic, Joseph gripped Robert's hand, effectively pulling him along with the two. Robert made an alarmed noise as he was pulled along with the two. He tried to pull away but Joseph had his hand in a vice grip, not daring to let him go. He grunted and allowed himself to be pulled along, feeling them all turn and stop. He looked ahead and noticed they were at an ice cream stand. 

"Uh, I didn't bring any money, Brian." He pulled his hand away from Joseph as he looked at Brian, slightly confused. The bigger man waved it off, pulling out his wallet with his usual smile.

"It was my idea to come out, so why not pay for our group," He said merrily, obviously not minding the fact that he was about to spend nine dollars on the three of them alone. Wild. He walked up to the counter and held up three fingers, a large smile on his face as he ordered and paid for the three of them. Joseph awkwardly stood next to Robert as they waited for Brian to come back with their cones. He smiled softly at Robert, which earned a small smile back.

"We haven't hung out in a while, Smalls," He pointed out, a smile on his face, "I'm glad we're starting to talk again." Robert grunted in response, nodding a bit. He and Joseph hadn't spoken due to …. private matters between the two that hadn't ended well. In all honesty, Robert couldn't remember why he truly liked Joseph in the first place. Sure, he was kinda kinky, but outside of the bedroom he seemed to be all cookie cutter houses and soccer games. He honestly wasn't his type if he had to say so. He opened his mouth to speak when Brian came back with three cones of ice cream and two little spoons for Joseph and Brian. The three took them and began to walk, telling stories of parenthood and how challenging it is. Robert occasionally listened in, not exactly caring much and not being able to give much positive feedback or advice about the topic. He had never been a very good father and he never exactly thought about how terrible he had been to Val since before they had made up. As he began to spiral into thoughts of being a horrid father, he bit into his ice cream, eliciting a soft gasp from one of the men. Snapping back into reality, he looked over at Joseph, who looked concerned.

"Holy- Robert, your teeth will be ruined if you do that." He frowned, as if scolding a child. Robert stifled a snort as Brian laughed, patting Joseph's shoulder gently.

"Robert has done that for as long as I can remember, Joseph. Try not to be too concerned about his eating habits. " He had a genuine smile on his face when he spoke, causing Joseph's cheeks to redden in embarrassment. Oh, that was cute.

"I was just concerned, that's all, " He spoke matter-of-factly, putting a small spoonful of ice cream in his mouth. He walked over to a patch of grass and sat down, looking at the other two. Brian quickly walked over, sitting next to him and Robert walked over, standing next to Brian. He bit into his ice cream again as his hand was gently tugged. Looking down, he noticed Brian was trying to pull him down to sit, which he complied to. He sat down, one of his knees bent up as they sat in silence and watched the sunset. The sky slowly darkened and the cicadas began to chirp and sing. A slight, cool wind descended on them, complementing the deep blue that washed over the sky. Robert silently finished his ice cream, looking over at the other two. Joseph seemed to be enjoying the peaceful silence between the three of them, leaning against the bench casually. Brian stretched a bit, seeming to be getting tired. Robert almost felt tempted to lay his head on his shoulder, but he decided it wasn’t the best time for that. He was an early nighter, Robert knew this. He gently patted his back, standing and popping his own back. 

"Let's head back, the kids are probably done with the movie and if we want to do anything else, you guys should make sure they're in bed." He turned and headed off, the other two following close behind as they made their way back to the cul-de-sac. Robert led the group this time, the three of them walking in pleasant silence. Joseph and Brian both knew that Robert hated small talk, so they all settled into synchronized steps back home.

Once they turned into their neighborhood, they parted ways, going off to their respective houses for the night. Robert walked in and closed the door behind him, running a hand through his hair and sighing.  Gentle paws tapped at the floor as Betsy ran up to him, jumping up and pawing at his legs. He gently picked her up and walked to his couch, leaning back and thinking about the day as he gently pet his dog. He had basically gone on a date with his closest friend and his ex-best friend's ex-husband.

Great.

He leaned back onto the couch, rubbing his eyes gently and groaning. He needed sleep. He felt like bar hopping or doing something because the night was basically just starting, although his body said otherwise. Thankfully the ice cream Brian had bought for him helped him feel a bit better despite his slight hangover. He lazily reached over to the table next to him, grabbing the sleeping medication he had on hand and took 3 dry, allowing himself to fall into a deep slumber. As his eyelids slowly drooped to a close, he thought about how Brian’s face looked nice with the sunset light framing it… Joseph looked pretty good too… 

Soon, the welcoming darkness of sleep descended on him, and all went quiet.


End file.
